The arms of Geneva are actually two shields impaled: half the eagle of the Holy Roman Empire, and one of the two keys of St. Peter (the "keys of heaven")
Geneva is one of the oldest cities in Europe, having been a Celtic capital before its conquest by the Romans in 121 BC. With the advent of Christianity, Geneva became an important and powerful bishopric. St. Peter's Cathedral still dominates the city. After the fall of Rome, Geneva came first under Frankish control, then Burgundian, and finally the Holy Roman Empire from which the city-state gained sovereignty in 1124. Savoy made repeated attempts to annex the city until 1603 when Bern lifted the last siege. Bern and Fribourg had been allies of Geneva since 1519, and Zurich formed a perpetual alliance in 1584, but the Swiss Catholic cantons blocked Geneva's attempt to become a full-fledged member of the Confederation. France annexed Geneva in 1793, but it regained its independence in 1813 and became the 22nd member of the restored Swiss Confederation in 1815.
The flag of the old bishopric of Geneva consisted of two gold keys on a red field, the field colour symbolising sovereignty within the Holy Roman Empire ("Blutbanner"). The earliest known example dates from 1293. In the 15th century the imperial eagle was impaled with the keys (obscuring one key and half the eagle), thus demonstrating both the city's imperial freedom and the bishop's sovereignty.
The full coat of arms of Geneva consists of the shield surmounted by a crest in the form of half a sun inscribed with the initials "J H S" (Jesus Hominum Salvator), and below a scrolled motto "Post Tenebras Lux" (after the darkness, light). The sun was an symbol of Geneva from earliest times, and the motto was added during the Reformation. The full coat of arms appeared as the central device on Geneva's flamed war flag of 1815.
Le blason du Grand-Saconnex, adopté en 1914, comporte une particularité. En effet, le Conseil administratif, dans son règlement d’utilisation des armoiries daté du 5.11.2009, ne fait pas mention de la couleur «or» qui, selon l’intitulé, garnirait la langue (lampassé) et les griffes (armé) du lion. Pour quelle raison? Mystère. Du coup, l’écusson ci-dessus ne comporte pas la couleur or. Le terme «coupé», lui, indique que le blason est divisé horizontalement en deux parties égales. Quant au mot «naissant», qui qualifie le lion, il souligne que l’animal semble sortir d’une des deux parties de l’écu.
La Commune a quasi copié les armes de la famille de Saconnay, la plus ancienne et la plus puissante du Pays de Gex, qui possédait des fiefs au Grand-Saconnex. Deux pierres tombales provenant de son caveau du XVe siècle, perdues à la Révolution française puis retrouvées, comportent ces armoiries. A noter que la commune de Bursinel, sur La Côte, présente le même blason, à un détail près: les étoiles ont six pointes au lieu de cinq.
Pourquoi une telle similitude? Tout simplement parce que les Saconnay acquirent cette seigneurie vaudoise au XVIe siècle, qu’ils conservèrent jusqu’à leur extinction, en 1788. http://www.tdg.ch/geneve/actu-genevoise/Le-lion-du-GrandSaconnex-cache-un-mystere/story/22388240
The coat of arms of the Grand Saconnex, adopted in 1914, includes a special feature. Indeed, the Administrative Council, in its coat of arms using settlement dated 5.11.2009, makes no mention of the color "gold" which, according to the title, garnirait language (lampassé) and claws (armed) the lion. Why? Mystery. Suddenly, above the badge does not include gold. The term "cut" him, says the shield is divided horizontally into two equal parts. The word "nascent" which qualifies the lion, he emphasized that the animal seems to come from one of two parts of the shield.
The Commune almost copied the arms of family Saconnay, the oldest and most powerful of the Pays de Gex, who owned fiefdoms in Grand Saconnex. Two tombstones from its vault of the fifteenth century, the French Revolution lost then found, containing these arms. Note that the town of Bursinel, on the coast, has the same coat of arms for one detail: the stars have six points instead of five.
Why such a similarity? Just because the Saconnay acquired the lordship Vaudois in the sixteenth century, they retained until their extinction in 1788.
Nyon
La description héraldique s’énonce dans les termes suivants: «Parti de gueules et d'azur au poisson d'argent brochant en fasce», ce qui signifie, dans le langage courant, qu’un poisson argenté est posé horizontalement sur les deux parties de l’écu qui sont divisées verticalement, l’une en rouge, l’autre en bleu.Les armoiries de Nyon sont déjà attestées comme telles en 1546.Le poisson – qui n’est pas une perche, mais un poisson générique – évoque bien évidemment la proximité du lac. Les couleurs, elles, n’ont pas de signification précise dans le cas présent. Certaines villes ont repris les couleurs des armoiries de leurs seigneurs, ce qui n’est pas le cas de Nyon. http://www.nyon.ch/fr/ville/generalites-0-3231
The heraldic description reads as follows: "Gules and Azure Party silver fish stitching "en fasce", which means, in common parlance, a silver fish is placed horizontally on both sides of the shield which are divided vertically, one red, the other blue. The arms of Nyon were already certified as such in 1546.
The fish - which is not a perche, but a generic fish - obviously evokes the nearby lake. The colors do not have a specific meaning in this case. Some cities have taken the colors of the arms of their lords, but is not the case in Nyon.
Lausanne
"Tous les Lausannois savent que los couleurs de leur ville sont le rouge et le blanc. Ce sont ces couleurs que l'on voit sur les volets du Châlet-à-Gobet et au Dézaley. Elles figurent sur l'écusson de Lausanne et sur le drapeau lausannois. L'écu du chef-lieu du Canton de Vaud ci-contre est divisé horizontale¬ ment en deux parties inégales, une partie blanche supérieure qui occupe le tiers supérieur, et une partie inférieure qui occupe les deux tiers inférieurs du champ de l'écu. En langage héraldique, on dit que l'écu de Lausanne est de gueules au chef d'argent.
Qelle est l'origine des couleurs lausannoises? Il est impossible de répondre actuellement à cette question. Ce sont peut-être les couleurs de l'Evêque de Lausanne ou du Duc de Savoie ; ou peut-être des deux à la fois. Ces mêmes couleurs se retrouvent sur les écussons des quatre parois¬ ses de Lavaux, sur ceux de Bulle, d'Avenches et de Villarzel qui dépendaient aussi de l'évêque de Lausanne."
All Lausanne know the colors of their city are red and white. It is these colors that we see on the vouchers of Chalet-à-Gobet and Dézaley. They appear on the escutcheon of Lausanne and the Lausanne flag. The shield of the capital of the Canton of Vaud below is divided against horizontalement into two unequal parts, which occupies the greater part white third upper and a lower part which occupies the lower two thirds the shield field. In heraldic language, it is said that the shield of Lausanne "gules a silver head".
What is the origin of Lausanne colors? That question can not currently be answered. This may be the colors of the Bishop of Lausanne or the Duke of Savoy; or perhaps both. These same colors are found on the crests of the four parrishes of Lavaux those of Bulle, Avenches and Villarzel which also depended on the bishop of Lausanne.
Parti d'azur et de gueules à la croix tréflée d'argent, brochant.
The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Per pale Azure and Gules, overall a Cross Bottony Argent.
Charles-Louis de Bons (1859) qui, le premier, s'est occupé des armoiries et des sceaux du Valais 4, constatait simplement que les armes de la ville de St-Maurice sont de celles « à qui on pourrait assigner une date assez reculée ». Selon lui, la ville de St-Maurice a les mêmes armes que l'abbaye « qui les lui à probablement données ». Soit d'après ce texte, soit d'après le dessin qui l'accompagne, il n'est pas question de parti d'azur et de gueules ; d'autre part, le dessin donne plutôt une croix fleuronnée qu'une croix tréflée, bien que le texte dise nettement « croix tréflée ». D'Angreville (1868) donne le parti, ainsi qu'Adolphe Gauthier 5 (1895), qui déclare aussi que les armes de la ville proviennent de celles de l'abbaye. C'est en effet de leurs évêchés et de leurs abbayes que la plupart des villes épiscopales et abbatiales de Suisse tirent leurs armoiries : il suffit de citer Bâle, Coire, Genève, Lausanne, Sion, St-Gall, Einsiedeln, Engelberg, Payerne, Romainmôtier.
Charles-Louis de Bons (1859) who first, took care of the Arms and seals Valais 4, simply found that the arms of the city of St-Maurice are those "who could be assigned a date remote enough." According to him, the city of St. Maurice has the same weapons as the abbey "that's him probably data. " Either from the text or from the drawing that accompanies it, there is no question of Azure and Gules; secondly, the drawing rather gives a cross flory a trefoil cross, although the text says clearly "cross trefoil". On Angreville (1868) gives the party and Adolphe Gauthier 5 (1895), which also states that the arms of the city come from those the abbey. It is indeed their bishoprics and abbeys of their most episcopal abbey and Swiss cities derive their arms: just quote Basel, Chur, Geneva, Lausanne, Sion, St Gallen, Einsiedeln, Engelberg, Payerne Romainmôtier.
"Certains ont prétendu que le drapeau suisse tire son origine du drapeau de la légion thébaine de l''Empire romain, mais l''argumentation est fragile. En 302, Maurice et ses légionnaires chrétiens furent exécutés en Valais pour avoir refuser de se sacrifier à l''Empereur et de réprimer les chrétiens locaux. Longtemps après sa mort, St-Maurice se vit accorder des armoiries: une croix boutonnée blanche sur un fond rouge (qui symbolise le sang des martyres de la légion) et l''armoiries de la ville portant son nom (dont le monastère a été fondé en 515) qui comporte la même croix sur un fond azur et rouge. Les armoiries de St-Victor et de St-Ursannes, patrons de Genève et de Soleure et officiers de la légion thébaine, comportent une similaire croix blanche boutonnée. L''iconographie médiévale décrit parfois le drapeau et les armoiries de St-Maurice comme une croix rouge sur fond blanc, ce qui rappelle les armoiries de St-George." http://www.smcv.ch/index.php/la-societe/51-l-histoire-du-drapeau-suisse
Some have claimed that the Swiss flag derives from the flag of the Theban Legion of the Roman Empire, but the argument is fragile. In 302 Maurice and his Christian legionaries were executed in Valais for refusing to sacrifice to the Emperor and to suppress the local Christians. Long after his death, St-Maurice was granted a coat of arms: a white button-cross on a red background (which symbolizes the blood of the martyrs of the Legion) and the 'arms of the city bearing his name (which the monastery was founded in 515), which has the same cross on a blue and red background. The arms of St. Victor and St. Ursannes, patrons of Geneva and Solothurn and officers of the Theban Legion, have a similar buttoned white cross. The medieval iconography sometimes described the flag and coat of arms St-Maurice as a red cross on a white background, which reminds the arms of St. George.
Table of Contents
Geneva
Geneva is one of the oldest cities in Europe, having been a Celtic capital before its conquest by the Romans in 121 BC. With the advent of Christianity, Geneva became an important and powerful bishopric. St. Peter's Cathedral still dominates the city. After the fall of Rome, Geneva came first under Frankish control, then Burgundian, and finally the Holy Roman Empire from which the city-state gained sovereignty in 1124. Savoy made repeated attempts to annex the city until 1603 when Bern lifted the last siege. Bern and Fribourg had been allies of Geneva since 1519, and Zurich formed a perpetual alliance in 1584, but the Swiss Catholic cantons blocked Geneva's attempt to become a full-fledged member of the Confederation. France annexed Geneva in 1793, but it regained its independence in 1813 and became the 22nd member of the restored Swiss Confederation in 1815.
The flag of the old bishopric of Geneva consisted of two gold keys on a red field, the field colour symbolising sovereignty within the Holy Roman Empire ("Blutbanner"). The earliest known example dates from 1293. In the 15th century the imperial eagle was impaled with the keys (obscuring one key and half the eagle), thus demonstrating both the city's imperial freedom and the bishop's sovereignty.
The full coat of arms of Geneva consists of the shield surmounted by a crest in the form of half a sun inscribed with the initials "J H S" (Jesus Hominum Salvator), and below a scrolled motto "Post Tenebras Lux" (after the darkness, light). The sun was an symbol of Geneva from earliest times, and the motto was added during the Reformation. The full coat of arms appeared as the central device on Geneva's flamed war flag of 1815.
http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/ch-ge.html
Saconnex
La Commune a quasi copié les armes de la famille de Saconnay, la plus ancienne et la plus puissante du Pays de Gex, qui possédait des fiefs au Grand-Saconnex. Deux pierres tombales provenant de son caveau du XVe siècle, perdues à la Révolution française puis retrouvées, comportent ces armoiries. A noter que la commune de Bursinel, sur La Côte, présente le même blason, à un détail près: les étoiles ont six pointes au lieu de cinq.
Pourquoi une telle similitude? Tout simplement parce que les Saconnay acquirent cette seigneurie vaudoise au XVIe siècle, qu’ils conservèrent jusqu’à leur extinction, en 1788.
http://www.tdg.ch/geneve/actu-genevoise/Le-lion-du-GrandSaconnex-cache-un-mystere/story/22388240
The coat of arms of the Grand Saconnex, adopted in 1914, includes a special feature. Indeed, the Administrative Council, in its coat of arms using settlement dated 5.11.2009, makes no mention of the color "gold" which, according to the title, garnirait language (lampassé) and claws (armed) the lion. Why? Mystery. Suddenly, above the badge does not include gold. The term "cut" him, says the shield is divided horizontally into two equal parts. The word "nascent" which qualifies the lion, he emphasized that the animal seems to come from one of two parts of the shield.
The Commune almost copied the arms of family Saconnay, the oldest and most powerful of the Pays de Gex, who owned fiefdoms in Grand Saconnex. Two tombstones from its vault of the fifteenth century, the French Revolution lost then found, containing these arms. Note that the town of Bursinel, on the coast, has the same coat of arms for one detail: the stars have six points instead of five.
Why such a similarity? Just because the Saconnay acquired the lordship Vaudois in the sixteenth century, they retained until their extinction in 1788.
Nyon
http://www.nyon.ch/fr/ville/generalites-0-3231
The heraldic description reads as follows: "Gules and Azure Party silver fish stitching "en fasce", which means, in common parlance, a silver fish is placed horizontally on both sides of the shield which are divided vertically, one red, the other blue. The arms of Nyon were already certified as such in 1546.
The fish - which is not a perche, but a generic fish - obviously evokes the nearby lake. The colors do not have a specific meaning in this case. Some cities have taken the colors of the arms of their lords, but is not the case in Nyon.
Lausanne
Qelle est l'origine des couleurs lausannoises? Il est impossible de répondre actuellement à cette question. Ce sont peut-être les couleurs de l'Evêque de Lausanne ou du Duc de Savoie ; ou peut-être des deux à la fois. Ces mêmes couleurs se retrouvent sur les écussons des quatre parois¬ ses de Lavaux, sur ceux de Bulle, d'Avenches et de Villarzel qui dépendaient aussi de l'évêque de Lausanne."
All Lausanne know the colors of their city are red and white. It is these colors that we see on the vouchers of Chalet-à-Gobet and Dézaley. They appear on the escutcheon of Lausanne and the Lausanne flag. The shield of the capital of the Canton of Vaud below is divided against horizontalement into two unequal parts, which occupies the greater part white third upper and a lower part which occupies the lower two thirds the shield field. In heraldic language, it is said that the shield of Lausanne "gules a silver head".
What is the origin of Lausanne colors? That question can not currently be answered. This may be the colors of the Bishop of Lausanne or the Duke of Savoy; or perhaps both. These same colors are found on the crests of the four parrishes of Lavaux those of Bulle, Avenches and Villarzel which also depended on the bishop of Lausanne.
Saint-Maurice
The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Per pale Azure and Gules, overall a Cross Bottony Argent.
Charles-Louis de Bons (1859) qui, le premier, s'est occupé des armoiries et des sceaux du Valais 4, constatait simplement que les armes de la ville de St-Maurice sont de celles « à qui on pourrait assigner une date assez reculée ». Selon lui, la ville de St-Maurice a les mêmes armes que l'abbaye « qui les lui à probablement données ». Soit d'après ce texte, soit d'après le dessin qui l'accompagne, il n'est pas question de parti d'azur et de gueules ; d'autre part, le dessin donne plutôt une croix fleuronnée qu'une croix tréflée, bien que le texte dise nettement « croix tréflée ». D'Angreville (1868) donne le parti, ainsi qu'Adolphe Gauthier 5 (1895), qui déclare aussi que les armes de la ville proviennent de celles de l'abbaye. C'est en effet de leurs évêchés et de leurs abbayes que la plupart des villes épiscopales et abbatiales de Suisse tirent leurs armoiries : il suffit de citer Bâle, Coire, Genève, Lausanne, Sion, St-Gall, Einsiedeln, Engelberg, Payerne, Romainmôtier.
Charles-Louis de Bons (1859) who first, took care of the Arms and seals Valais 4, simply found that the arms of the city of St-Maurice are those "who could be assigned a date remote enough." According to him, the city of St. Maurice has the same weapons as the abbey "that's him probably data. " Either from the text or from the drawing that accompanies it, there is no question of Azure and Gules; secondly, the drawing rather gives a cross flory a trefoil cross, although the text says clearly "cross trefoil". On Angreville (1868) gives the party and Adolphe Gauthier 5 (1895), which also states that the arms of the city come from those the abbey. It is indeed their bishoprics and abbeys of their most episcopal abbey and Swiss cities derive their arms: just quote Basel, Chur, Geneva, Lausanne, Sion, St Gallen, Einsiedeln, Engelberg, Payerne Romainmôtier.
"Certains ont prétendu que le drapeau suisse tire son origine du drapeau de la légion thébaine de l''Empire romain, mais l''argumentation est fragile. En 302, Maurice et ses légionnaires chrétiens furent exécutés en Valais pour avoir refuser de se sacrifier à l''Empereur et de réprimer les chrétiens locaux. Longtemps après sa mort, St-Maurice se vit accorder des armoiries: une croix boutonnée blanche sur un fond rouge (qui symbolise le sang des martyres de la légion) et l''armoiries de la ville portant son nom (dont le monastère a été fondé en 515) qui comporte la même croix sur un fond azur et rouge. Les armoiries de St-Victor et de St-Ursannes, patrons de Genève et de Soleure et officiers de la légion thébaine, comportent une similaire croix blanche boutonnée. L''iconographie médiévale décrit parfois le drapeau et les armoiries de St-Maurice comme une croix rouge sur fond blanc, ce qui rappelle les armoiries de St-George."
http://www.smcv.ch/index.php/la-societe/51-l-histoire-du-drapeau-suisse
Some have claimed that the Swiss flag derives from the flag of the Theban Legion of the Roman Empire, but the argument is fragile. In 302 Maurice and his Christian legionaries were executed in Valais for refusing to sacrifice to the Emperor and to suppress the local Christians. Long after his death, St-Maurice was granted a coat of arms: a white button-cross on a red background (which symbolizes the blood of the martyrs of the Legion) and the 'arms of the city bearing his name (which the monastery was founded in 515), which has the same cross on a blue and red background. The arms of St. Victor and St. Ursannes, patrons of Geneva and Solothurn and officers of the Theban Legion, have a similar buttoned white cross. The medieval iconography sometimes described the flag and coat of arms St-Maurice as a red cross on a white background, which reminds the arms of St. George.